Long-distance friendship began decades ago with CB radio

Monday

Nov 19, 2012 at 11:07 AM

With modern technology, making a new friend can be a Facebook post or tweet away.

Xerxes WilsonStaff Writer

With modern technology, making a new friend can be a Facebook post or tweet away. But one could say Choupic resident Michele Molaison and her special friend Beverley Lewis did it the hard way. It was an old CB radio that brought the Canadian Lewis and Molaison together more than 35 years ago. As an 11-year-old, Molaison said she and many others would use the radio and give their name and address to receive postcard from those listening in locales far away. “It was just a fun thing to do,” Molaison said. “The radio actually sounded like aliens, so you’d have to listen really close to get the information.”One night, Lewis, who was then a 16-year-old, received an address from her brother who had heard Molaison’s call on the radio.“He just gave me the information and said this would be someone you could write letters with,” Lewis said. She did and little did she know it would start a friendship that has flourished for 35 years though they are 2,000 miles apart. Lewis visited Thibodaux last week from her native Nova Scotia. It’s one of six times the two have met in person, but one couldn’t tell from speaking with the giggly duo. “At first I was shy, you know: ‘I have a dog, I have a cat, I like doing this, what is your favorite color?’ ” Molaison said. But what started out as shy letters between pen pals in different worlds quickly developed into a deep friendship that resulted in them talking regularly on the phone. “We can talk about anything,” Lewis said. “We both are just easy going with open hearts.”The two developed a relationship and after eight years of calls, the two first met in person when Lewis visited for Molaison’s wedding. “It was 1985, I could have been coming to a crack house, but (our parents) talked, and we came, and they were nice normal people,” Lewis said.The two really hit it off after meeting for the first time. “A lot of people have pen pals, but they don’t keep them up,” Molaison said. “At first we were shy, but after we met each other it was like we knew each other forever.”The two speak as though they are best friends. Molaison visited Lewis in her frigid home, noting the chilly temperature in the middle of July.“We were using a wood heater in July,” she said with a laugh. Lewis has been to visit Molaison five times and like many visitors was quick to comment on the food. “There is always more of me coming home than there is coming here. The food is so unique. Our food is not spicy at all, so I always take spices back home with me,” Lewis said adding she has tried both alligator and squirrel.“The people are so friendly and inquisitive here,” she said with a smile. Lewis always tries to visit on a special occasion so she can see more of Molaison’s family who she has become good friends with. The occasion this time was Molaison’s daughter’s 21st birthday, which they celebrated in New Orleans. Lewis stays in contact with Molaison’s family through Facebook, and the two still talk about all manner of things over the phone. They hope to stay friends forever but maybe get to see each other a little more often.“I just hope the next time I’m down here it isn’t with a walker,” Lewis said with a laugh.